


I Want to Be Caught up in You

by LuketheWriter



Series: College! [4]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Age Difference, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Boys In Love, But that's because Nishinoya's a lovable thot, Casual Sex, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Gay Kageyama Tobio, Gay Sex, Gay Sugawara Koushi, It's time to welcome you to the college universe I hope you enjoy your stay, Kageyama's a freshman and Sugawara's a senior, Making Love, Making Out, Multi, Oral Sex, POV Third Person Omniscient, Partying, Second semester story, Smut, Starts first but goes into second, Switching, Terushima is briefly mentioned here because he'll be important later, Underage Drinking, Welcome to a rarer ship than TsukkiYama, happy new year
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 07:17:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17259929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuketheWriter/pseuds/LuketheWriter
Summary: "...the more they did this, the more Tobio felt for Koushi. He hadn’t asked if a relationship was something he wanted; Koushi was graduating in three months, going off to medical school if they accepted his application come June. Meanwhile, Tobio had three whole years left of college and then hopefully Harvard and a position at a law firm following that last convocation. But would he and Koushi still be doing this same routine even after college was over? Wouldn’t they get bored? And wouldn’t they both want something more to fill the space between them?"Koushi and Tobio both want to be caught up in each other, but it's complicated.





	I Want to Be Caught up in You

**Author's Note:**

> Happy New Year, everyone! Welcome to 2019. I'm hoping this year will give me the chance to write more fic and get a novel I've wanted revised and sent out to agents done. We shall see. In the meantime, here's the start of an AU where our favorite volleyball boys are in college and living life. The first idea is one that will come once I watch the second season of Haikyu, but this one was inspired from episode 21, when I realized how much of the framing around the differences in Kageyama and Sugawara's setting there impacted me. Then I started shipping them. Oops. It's worth it, though.
> 
> I'm pretty proud of this one and glad I got it done before the end of the year. Now I get to release it as my first fic of 2019! I hope you enjoy it.
> 
> The title is taken from a lyric of Jessie Ware's excellent "Stay Awake, Wait for Me."

As soon as Tobio closed the door to Koushi’s apartment, Koushi pushed him against the wood, his lips finding Tobio’s.

Tobio wasn’t surprised at this point. He and his…well, what was Koushi to him? A friend? A fuck-buddy? His boyfriend? None of the titles made sense. “Friend” implied that they hung out whenever either of them was free and they had time to kill, but whenever they did that, it wasn’t like they got together to study or watch a movie. It was more of a text message saying, “Hey, my roommates are out of the apartment this afternoon. Wanna come over?” followed by the tearing of each other’s clothes off and fucking on any surface that sounded appealing. They definitely weren’t boyfriends, either. There was no hand-holding, kissing, or any PDA in public, really, and no dates where they got to eat at restaurants that only the cheapest of college students could afford. It was all in the privacy of Koushi’s room pretty much, and if they were hungry afterwards, Koushi would bake a frozen pizza in the oven while only wearing a pair of sweatpants, leaving Tobio to struggle not to notice the soft curves of muscle all over Koushi while wanting to rip those pants off because he was a horny nineteen-year-old with a limitless libido that reignited way too easily; Koushi was way too hot.

Fuck-buddies made the most sense, but Tobio still hesitated to officially slap that name on the relationship. He had to admit, he got a lot of sexual gratification out of every interaction with Koushi, whether it was getting the chance to be with him in person or receiving a lewd Snap video of him stroking himself, a picture of a pec. Tobio got off just the same no matter the method. And sometimes he needed that break from reality for a bit, whether it was all that homework that seemed to pile on itself or from the Energizer Bunny that was his roommate, who never learned how to shut the fuck up. Sex was one of the greatest things he had ever experienced. He saw why people wrote about it like it was such a legendary thing in books and magazines. He understood why there was so much focus on it in those romantic comedy and erotic thriller movies. It took over your entire being, letting you relish in its heat until you were burning. He never understood it until Koushi was inside him, and then everything clicked.

But the more they did this, the more Tobio felt for Koushi. He hadn’t asked if a relationship was something he wanted; Koushi was graduating in three months, going off to medical school if they accepted his application come June. Meanwhile, Tobio had three whole years left of college and then hopefully Harvard and a position at a law firm following that last convocation. But would he and Koushi still be doing this same routine even after college was over? Wouldn’t they get bored? And wouldn’t they both want something more to fill the space between them?

Well, Tobio did at least. He wasn’t sure about Koushi, though. But it didn’t matter right now.

What did? Making love.

OOOO

Tobio met Koushi at a homecoming party on the bottom floor of the infamous fraternity house on campus, a place that transformed into a sticky-floored and hi-hat-filled haunted house of drunk fraternity bros and screaming college students wanting to get freaky now that it was the weekend. Tobio was one of the few sober people there, mostly because he wasn’t interested in drinking while underage and partly because he knew most of the drinks were probably laced with something. He sat down on the sofa right in the middle of the basement, trying not to gag under the stench of alcohol and sweat.

“Hey, is this seat taken?”

This shout over the music sent Tobio’s attention to the left, redirecting itself from the ceiling. There was a guy standing next to him, nursing a bottle of water in one hand and running a hand through his silver hair with another. It dropped back to his side and fiddled with the bottom of his V-neck shirt, black with gray and white stripes traveling across his chest. His skin was pale and his eyes were brown, and the contrast made it hard to look away from him. Tobio was struggling to figure out what to say, but then he realized all he needed to do was shake his head. He did that, and the guy let out a sigh of relief as he sank back on the cushions.

“Thanks,” he said, although it came out more like “Thank” because the s seemed to be locked behind his teeth. He was tipsy and probably drinking that water so he could get sober, Tobio thought.

A few moments of silence passed between them, punctured constantly by ping pong balls slapping against wet plastic and heavy beats of bass. A girl fell down on the floor in front of them, and both moved their feet back and cringed as her drink spilled out into a puddle next to her. Tobio’s couch companion reached out his hand to try and help, but one of the girl’s friends hoisted her up and started saying it was probably time to head out. Tobio started threading his fingers together, looking back at the guy as he started to smile.

“This party not much of your scene?” the guy asked, unscrewing the lid of his water and taking a swig.

Tobio frowned, staring at his hands. “I mean, I’ve never been to a party before, so this is my first time actually experiencing it all, but no, definitely not.”

The boy laughed, a soft sound that made Tobio’s heart levitate in his chest. “So you’re a freshman. Nice. Welcome to college.”

“Thanks,” Tobio mumbled. “Could I have a sip of your water?”

“Sure.” The couch companion passed the bottle over, and Tobio drank on the other side so he didn’t have to make contact with the place some other guy’s lips had been on and get met by shouts of “Indirect kiss! Indirect kiss!” The water was lukewarm, but he had heard that was better for hydrating you anyway, so he’d take it. He gave the bottle back to the guy, muttering his thanks again.

“To be honest, these parties aren’t really my thing either,” the guy admitted. “It’s just my last homecoming, so I was like, ‘Why not’?

“But to be fair….” He grinned, and Tobio noticed there was a freckle next to his left eye that disappeared in a dimple. “I think I have better parties in my apartment with my roommates. Sometimes we get together with some beer and take-out and watch a football game if it’s on. You know, super chill stuff like that.”

That sounded better than this. To be fair, anything sounded better than this. “Is that an invitation?” Tobio cocked his head.

The guy hummed, grin becoming mischievous. “Maybe.” He extended his hand to Tobio. “I’m Koushi, by the way. What’s your name?”

Tobio met Koushi’s palm and was surprised by how warm and comforting his hand was. He didn’t think he’d ever want to let go. “Tobio.”

“Nice to meet you, Tobio.” Koushi shifted so he was facing Tobio. “How’d you get here?”

And from there, the two had a conversation about everything: how they got to this school, what they were majoring, and what they wanted to do with their lives. As they talked, Koushi’s words sharpened and became clearer, so Tobio knew he was coming back into himself a bit. Sober Koushi was as invested in this conversation as Tipsy Koushi had been, which Tobio appreciated more than he showed. When he told Koushi about how he was studying sociology and wanted to be a lawyer, Koushi gave a little round of applause. “That’s awesome! What do you wanna do the most?”

“Prosecution,” Tobio admitted.

“You’re gonna make the defense fight for it, I can tell,” Koushi teased.

Tobio blushed. “I won’t be that brutal.”

“I wonder….” Koushi winked. “Oh, I’m just messing with you. You wanna know about me?”

After shifting a little on the couch so he was facing Koushi fully, Tobio nodded.

“I’m studying nursing with the hopes of becoming a physical therapist,” Koushi said. “I want to help athletes who have injured themselves and make sure they get back on the right foot, no pun intended. Did you do any sports in high school?”

“I was in a volleyball club outside of school, and I did a little soccer.”

“So I think you can imagine how much effort some people put into what they love and what happens when they get hurt.” Koushi winced. “When they can’t do anything, they take it pretty hard and will do anything to get better. Hopefully when I get in, they can get back on the field or the court in no time.”

Tobio smiled, a gesture that he hoped didn’t look creepy like the many times his roommate had made it seem that way. “That sounds perfect for you.”

“Thanks.” Koushi took another sip of water. “I actually get that a lot. I was captain of a volleyball club at a rec center, which I think might’ve been a lot like yours. Anyway, the guys said I was one of the most nurturing people they knew and kind of pushed me towards looking into something in nursing, and therapy stuck.”

The thread of conversation dissolved, and both boys began to make small talk until Tobio looked over Koushi’s shoulder to see a boy and a girl passionately making out. One of the guy’s fingers was twisting the strap of her tank top, and she was giggling and making these breathy sounds that Tobio wanted to say were moans but may have been more like giggles. Either way, his eyes widened, his cheeks blossoming into color.

Koushi followed Tobio’s gaze, and when he turned back and gave Tobio a cheeky beam, Tobio’s face grew even hotter. “They’re enjoying themselves,” Koushi laughed, twirling the remaining water around in his bottle. “It’s pretty bold to make out so openly at a party like this.”

All Tobio could do was nod.

Koushi’s grin fell a little. “Hey, if you want, we can move this conversation somewhere else. I was thinking of heading back to my apartment now anyway.”

Tobio agreed with absolutely no hesitation, and that’s how he found himself following Koushi out into the early fall chill, huddling into his sweater and talking about his first kiss, one that he reluctantly did with his roommate during an incredibly awkward game of Dorm Floor Spin the Bottle that reminded him of all the cringe-inducing moments of middle school.

“I’m not interested in doing anything with that idiot,” he snapped, fiddling with the cuffs of his jacket, “but I still felt something shift inside me, you know? Like I liked the action of kissing a guy. I just hate that it had to be him.”

Koushi chuckled. “That sounds pretty bad. So I’m guessing you haven’t done anything else?”

Tobio looked down at the sidewalk.

“Hey, that’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Koushi said, turning to face Tobio. The apartments across the street rose behind him, and Tobio found part of him trying to figure out which one was Koushi’s. “There are actually a lot of people who decide not to be sexually active. That’s okay. You don’t have to be like what you see.”

Tobio wanted to say he wouldn’t hesitate to try something, particularly because he really enjoyed this guy’s company and wondered what being with him would be like, but Koushi was still talking and interrupting seemed pretty rude. Tobio wanted to hear him talk for hours. “Sometimes I wish I hadn’t dived straight into the sea as soon as I got here, but I don’t think I would feel the way I do now without it.”

One of Tobio’s eyebrows rose.

“You’re probably wondering what I mean by that.” Koushi’s cheeks turned a little pink as he bit his bottom lip. “I’m going to be straightforward with you: I’ve been around. I haven’t been in a relationship, but I’ve slept with plenty of guys and done a lot of different things with them. I know what I like and don’t like, so I guess that’s one thing that’s good. You still have time to figure it out, maybe in a relationship, maybe not. To be that young again sounds so wonderful right now.”

Tobio scoffed. “Are you sure you’re sober?”

Koushi grinned. “Pretty sure.” He let out a whoosh of air through pursed lips. “Hopefully I’m not hungover tomorrow.”

Koushi and Tobio crossed the street and entered the apartment building to the left. Koushi’s room, shared with two other guys (Tobio couldn’t read their name tags in the low light), was up a staircase and to the right. When Koushi’s right hand closed around the doorknob and his left went into his coat pocket to dig out his key, Tobio panicked for a moment and reached out to grab Koushi’s wrist. The touch sent a jolt through him, and he thought Koushi felt it too because his eyes got big.

“What’s wrong, Tobio?” Koushi asked. “Do you want my Snapchat or something before we say goodbye?”

Tobio’s eyebrows furrowed, unsure of how to phrase what he wanted to say next. His words came slowly, spilling out of him like syrup. “Koushi, do you remember when you said a lot of people don’t decide to be sexually active?”

“Yeah, what about it?” Koushi cocked his head.

“Well, um….” _Shit. Now what?_ “I wouldn’t be opposed to trying something at some point, maybe now…with you, if that would be okay.”

Koushi’s mouth dropped open. “Are you saying what I’m thinking you’re saying?”

Tobio felt his face burning. “I mean, I’ve liked spending time with you tonight, and I think you’re attractive, and hearing you reference the stuff you’ve done makes me want to—”

“Am I pressuring you into this?”

At that, Tobio started to register Koushi’s face, an anxious grimace that made him want to give him a hug.

“Is this what I’ve come to?” Koushi asked. “Have I really gotten to the point where I coyly coerce guys into having sex with me? I mean, I know I flirt and all, but I wouldn’t want you to do anything you weren’t comfortable with.”

“Hey, if I didn’t want to, I would say so,” Tobio snapped. “Don’t worry about this so much! Why don’t you just kiss me already?”

It took a second for what Tobio said to dawn on him, and wow, he didn’t know he was so bold. It was embarrassing. He kind of wanted to crawl under a rock now.

Koushi smiled then, and Tobio’s knees wanted to give out.

“All right,” Koushi said. His hands went to rest on Tobio’s shoulders, and Tobio realized that he was taller than Koushi by at least three inches. “To be honest, I was hoping you’d say something because I don’t think I’ve ever been this attracted to a guy in a while.” He shook his head, his grin almost breaking off his face. “If at any point you wanna take a step back, let me know, okay?”

Tobio nodded.

“Okay,” Koushi breathed. “So...you wanted a kiss?”

And that’s how Tobio and Koushi ended up making out in the hallway of one of the apartment buildings, followed by running into Koushi’s room so Koushi could give Tobio his first and best blowjob of his life.

The rest was history.

OOOO

When Koushi broke away from Tobio, he noticed the desire burning in Tobio’s gray eyes and couldn’t resist from smiling cheekily. “I did something, didn’t I?”

Tobio’s face heated up as he looked down. “It was that photo you sent, the one in the locker room with your jockstrap but you’re facing the mirror so I could see your butt. It made me want to see you, to be…inside you.”

Koushi chuckled. “I’m glad that you’re honest,” he whispered, a hand going up to brush against one of Tobio’s flushed cheeks. “So you wanna go do that right now? You wanna fuck me?”

He felt Tobio stiffen under his fingers, and he grinned. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

Koushi surprised himself every single time something like “fuck me” passed over his lips. It was crude, something he had never really been, even when he got absolutely trashed in front of Asahi and Daichi, his two roommates. The line sounded like something out of a romance novel a few of his friends would pick up from the rack of the grocery store and dramatically read, Ryunosuke and Asashi’s boyfriend Yu passing the novel back and forth and making over-the-top moaning sounds that would have Koushi laughing, Asahi blushing, and Daichi snapping at them to keep moving and get groceries; did they want to starve for the next two weeks? But Koushi knew he had always been one to cut to the chase, immediately recognizing whenever Asahi and Daichi were having a bad day and bringing them tissues as he asked what was wrong. And this was no different. Tobio wanted sex, and Koushi was willing to provide. Maybe Tobio had helped when it came to the bluntness of these situations, actually. But who knew for sure? All Koushi wanted to do was pull Tobio into him and then plow him into his mattress.

Koushi led the way to his room like he had done so many times before, fingers woven into Tobio’s. When he opened the door and closed it behind them, he locked eyes with Tobio, the hand that was holding his underclassman’s coming to rest in his hair and the other going to his jaw. He walked around so Tobio was the one whose back was facing the bed, and that’s when he decided to slip his tongue into Tobio’s mouth.

The two made out for what felt like hours, and by the time they separated, they were on Koushi’s bed and laughing, Koushi open-mouthed and throwing his head back and Tobio close-mouthed and looking up at him. When Koushi’s face came back down, he saw so much desire in Tobio’s eyes, so much want that he voiced in random spurts but was always visible on his face. Koushi never knew a guy he had been with who had been like that. Granted, most of his previous interactions with guys had been one-night stands, those where sex was hot and sweaty and defined by pleasure, not something consistent that ebbed and flowed. There had been a few he loved from those wild nights, and there were others he had seen again because he had enjoyed them so much (one in particular was that guy with the tongue piercing…and the other piercings; now that had been a fun weekend), but there was nobody who he had felt such an intense connection with before, one that lingered beyond their encounters. Sometimes he would be in the shower and think about what Tobio was doing, if he was working on homework or thinking about Koushi the way Koushi was thinking about him. Then his dick would get hard and he’d find himself on the floor of the shower, jerking off until he came all over his hands and legs.

Koushi didn’t want to place any bets on Tobio feeling for him. Their arrangement following that blowjob on Homecoming Night had strictly been having sex, whatever they were feeling that day. But it seemed like the more time passed, the more Koushi began to feel like both of them had these feelings that were growing and growing.

And with an uncertain future ahead of him, Koushi didn’t know what to do in the long term. The short term, however, was easier: he could just have sex.

Koushi grabbed onto the bottom of Tobio’s shirt and pulled it off, revealing lean muscle and tan skin. Tobio helped Koushi with his, and their bare chests met, their nipples hard and peaked from the cold outside and the heat coursing through their veins. Koushi let out a gasp and Tobio gritted his teeth, limbs tangling as Koushi crawled on top of his underclassman and began leaving a trail of kisses all over his body. When he reached Tobio’s jeans, he took his time giving attention to his lover’s abs and navel before unbuttoning the metal and pulling down the zipper, revealing tented plaid boxers with a wet spot already on the fabric. Koushi couldn’t keep himself from grinning as he laid his lips on the stain, feeling Tobio’s cock twitch from the contact. When he took hold of the denim and cotton and sent them off the bed, Tobio sighed as his dick entered the open air, landing on his stomach with a smack. It made Koushi lick his lips a little as he took it into his right hand.

“Let’s start getting you ready for me, Tobio,” he whispered, tonguing the head of Tobio’s dick.

Tobio stopped breathing for a minute, and then his fingers dove into Koushi’s silver locks as Koushi went down more, going past the head and taking in the first couple of inches after that. Koushi’s throat burned a little, but he liked that hint of pain. It felt good, pleasure with a twist. He couldn’t wait to have this dick inside him, feel his walls hugging it as he rode up and down, up and down.

Koushi popped off Tobio’s cock and gave it a few strokes, savoring the slick up and down of his fist against the saliva-covered skin. “You have such a great cock,” Koushi said, tightening his grip and watching Tobio’s eyes bug out of his head, mouth falling open with a loud groan. “I’m pretty sure you have fun playing with it when I’m not around. Do you wish I was with you when you do?”

“Yeah, sometimes,” Tobio mumbled.

“Hey, I’m glad you admitted that!” Koushi chuckled, giving a couple last licks at the head before letting it go. “Could you grab the condoms and lube from my bedside table drawer?”

While Tobio was preoccupied by that, Koushi pushed his track pants down and turned around, facing the end of the bed and hoping that Tobio would like what was in front of him. He knew the minute Tobio saw what was being presented because he shouted and dropped the lube bottle and box of condoms. Koushi heard them plop on the bed.

He looked over his shoulder. “What?”

He was still wearing the white-and-light-blue jockstrap that had been in the photo he had sent to Tobio earlier that morning, and he knew it. But he couldn’t help himself. Acting clueless usually paid off pretty well.

Tobio shook his head as Koushi’s lips broke into a sly grin. “You’re unbelievable sometimes, you know that?”

“But you love it,” Koushi teased. “Now get that condom and lube on and let me ride.”

Koushi crawled so he was straddling Tobio’s chest as he waited for Tobio to get ready. “You sure you don’t want me to prep you?” Tobio asked, squirting lube onto his condom-clad dick.

“I did that before you got here, so we’re all covered,” Koushi replied.

Tobio’s eyes widened. “Koushi, I swear to god, if you hurt yourself because you did your prep a while ago—”

“I’m pretty sure I’ll be okay,” Koushi interjected, holding the base of Tobio’s arousal and steadying it against his ass. “Thank you for your concern, though. I appreciate it.”

Tobio started grumbling about how Koushi was actually losing his mind, and Koushi stifled a laugh before letting the head of Tobio’s shaft in. This shut Tobio up, and his complaint was replaced with a moan as Koushi settled on Tobio’s dick, rocking against the length of his lover.

Koushi’s tongue flicked out to touch his front teeth. “Fuck, you feel amazing inside me, Tobio. Want me to start moving?”

Tobio could only nod, and that was answer enough. Koushi raised his hips until only the head remained, and then he came back down. He let out a groan as he went up again, sinking into a slow and steady rhythm. Tobio’s hands traveled up Koushi’s legs, one coming to rest at his hipbone and the other palming at the arousal straining against the front of his jockstrap.

They stayed like this for a while, fifteen minutes passing with Koushi bouncing up and down on Tobio’s cock. As soon as Koushi saw his clock go to 2:30 out of the corner of his eye, he let Tobio’s dick slowly glide out of his ass, shivering as it left inch by inch. When all of it was out, he stood on his bed and quickly discarded his jockstrap. “My turn. Get on your knees and turn around.”

Tobio looked shocked but obeyed, and Koushi leaned over to grab another condom from the drawer, hoping his underclassman felt the heat from his arousal even though it wasn’t touching his backside. He set it aside and cupped Tobio’s butt, watching the skin prickle with goosebumps. He coated some fingers with lube and caressed them against the wrinkled and winking skin of Tobio’s anus, pushing them in one at a time and waiting for Tobio to get adjusted before adding more. Every time Koushi hit Tobio’s prostate, Tobio let out a sound that was half grunt and half moan, a sound that made Koushi’s dick pulse. He wanted this guy. He wanted him bad.

Koushi rolled the condom on and made sure to get everything lubed up, tapping against the freckle on the head of his penis that matched the one on his face. Then he pressed against Tobio’s ass and groaned as he glided in.

“Koushi,” Tobio groaned as Koushi bottomed out inside him, “ _shit_.”

“Are you okay?” Koushi asked. “Does it hurt? Should I pull out?”

“Yeah, you should pull out.” Tobio looked back at Koushi, and his look was sharp enough that it made Koushi jump a little. “And then you’re going right back in. Fuck me hard, Koushi.”

“Yes, sir!” Koushi saluted with a beam, and then he pulled all the way out and pushed back in. Tobio’s breaths sped up the faster Koushi went, and soon they were both panting with pleasure, Koushi pressing his lips against the small of Tobio’s back intermittently between each one. By the time he was fucking every second, he knew he wasn’t going to last long, especially with how warm Tobio was inside and how hard Tobio was trying not to moan out super loud in case neighboring apartments heard them, gritting his teeth while decibels still slipped through.

“Tobio, I’m close,” Koushi said, a breath stuttering out of his lungs.

“M-me too,” Tobio replied. “Oh, god, Koushi, I’m gonna come.”

Koushi grabbed Tobio’s cock and jerked him off with a vicious grip and speed, biting and kissing Tobio’s shoulder. Tobio shouted as Koushi felt the sensation of warm come hitting latex under his fingers, and he was climaxing too, stars popping in his body as he released into his own condom. When it was all said and done, he pulled out slowly, bringing his hands to rest under the soiled condom on his softening dick.

“I’m gonna go clean up,” he announced. “Do you need anything?”

Tobio rolled over, pulling off his condom as his breath steadied and his cheeks pink. “Maybe some water,” he admitted, passing the latex to Koushi. “That was really good.”

“It was,” Koushi replied. “You came a lot, and it looks like I did too. I’m glad you liked it.”

“Hey, when you get back, do you mind if we cuddle for a little bit?”

Koushi looked up in surprise, and what was even more surprising was how red Tobio had gotten.

“No, not at all,” Koushi replied, and he could feel his mouth curling into a smile. He kept it a closed one; it didn’t seem right to show teeth for this moment, one where Tobio looked so delicate. “Any particular reason?”

Tobio shook his head, but then he said, “Your warmth makes me feel good.”

Koushi couldn’t stop himself from blushing, so he cleared his throat and turned away. “All right. Spooning it is! Let me grab you a warm washcloth and water. I’ll be right back.”

The water was scorching as soon as Koushi turned it on, and as he was cradling the bar of soap and cloth in his hands, he tried to piece together what this request meant. _What does Tobio want?_

He didn’t find an answer, but as he watched Tobio drink from a water bottle and snuggle up next to him under the covers for a quick nap, maybe that was answer enough for now.

OOOO

The next day, Koushi got a text from Tobio while he was eating lunch in the cafeteria, asking if he could come over. It was rare of Tobio to be the one offering a meeting; usually it was Koushi figuring out when his roommates were gone and extending an invitation outward. This was new, and Koushi liked it.

**Sounds good! I’ll be free. The apartment will be to ourselves as well.**

**Hey, Koushi, is it okay if I say I want to talk to you about something? And get homework done. That too.**

**I want to try something different today.**

Koushi’s eyes widened. This was also a surprise, but it sounded closer to the idealized version of their relationship: a couple wanting to spend time together. Maybe that’s what Tobio wanted to talk about.

Or was it that he wanted this to end?

_No. That doesn’t sound like Tobio. He would’ve told me if he had wanted to stop a long time ago. Get that thought out of your head, Koushi._

**All right. See you later.**

That afternoon, when the doorbell rang, Koushi opened it wearing his reading glasses and loose winter-appropriate clothes. Tobio had his backpack thrown over one shoulder, a hand fiddling with a dark blue winter coat over a long-sleeved black shirt. Koushi’s cheeks flushed at how adorable Tobio looked, and all he wanted to do was wrap him up in his arms and kiss until their lips were sore. But that’s not what Tobio wanted; Koushi knew as much from how low the heat in that gaze was.

Tobio’s cheeks burned. “Hey, Koushi. I like the glasses.”

Koushi grinned. “Thank you.” He pushed the pair of thin gray spectacles up his nose, only for them to fall a little bit forward like they always did. “I wear them so I can read from my textbooks.”

“Is your vision that bad?” Tobio asked, walking into Koushi’s apartment. Koushi took his initiative, shutting the door behind him and following the underclassman to his room.

“Not really,” Koushi admitted, settling on his carpet, where he had laid out chemistry lab instructions and a notebook for scribbling down things to experiment in that lab tomorrow. “I have good enough vision to see fine in classes and when I’m walking around, and I don’t need contacts. My eyes have just always been strained by text for some reason, hence why I have these.”

Tobio sat down across from Koushi, his coat falling off his shoulders. “Okay.”

“You got stuff to work on?”

Tobio pulled out one of the hugest textbooks Koushi had ever seen, one of the biggest notebooks known to man, a pen, and a highlighter. “Yeah.”

“Whoa! I never realized Social and Criminal Justice was so intense.”

“Yeah,” Tobio said, his cheeks flaring up again. “It might just be me, though. I wasn’t the best student in high school, so I have to work twice as hard as everyone else. That’s why I have all this stuff.”

“Ah, that makes sense. Sorry. I feel like I jumped to conclusions there.”

Tobio shook his head. “No, you’re fine.” His fingers tapped against the cover of his textbook. “It must look a little weird from the outside.”

“It doesn’t,” Koushi insisted. Now he felt even worse for this guy. He reached over and grabbed his wrist. “I like that you’re dedicated and willing to work hard, Tobio. It’s admirable, really.”

“Oh…well…thanks.”

The two of them stared at where they were connected until Tobio pulled his arm away. “Should we get started?”

_Crap. This is awkward._

“Yeah, sure,” Koushi said.

Koushi connected his phone to his Bluetooth speaker and let some chill pop playlist play quietly in the background as he and Tobio got to work. Half an hour passed before Koushi heard Tobio say his name.

Setting his pencil down against his last bullet point of lab instruction, Koushi looked up. “What’s up, Tobio?”

Tobio tapped the end of his pen against his lip, closing his notebook and letting it fall out of his lap. Then the pen went too, letting Tobio’s gray eyes lock onto Koushi. “I want to talk to you about what I sent earlier today.”

“Okay.” Koushi drew out the word as he shifted positions, stretching out on the floor and resting his face against a palm.

Tobio cleared his throat, front teeth poking at his bottom lip. “I don’t know how to get around the subject without saying it, so I think I’m just gonna say it.” He took a breath. “I want to be in a relationship with you.”

Koushi felt his entire body tense, eyes bugging out and hands coming up to grasp for something; maybe it was Tobio’s face or his hands or legs or something. Then he collapsed, relieved laughter escaping his body as everything relaxed against the carpet. He felt like he was floating, a buoy bopping against the water on a quiet stream. _Oh, thank goodness._

“Hey!” Tobio snapped, and Koushi felt his grip on his arm. “What’s so funny? Don’t laugh at me!”

“I’m not…laughing…at you,” Koushi said, trying to gulp in air between raucous punctuations. “Just…give me a second….to reassure you. Woo!” When he had settled down, he tried again. “I was just laughing because I’m relieved that I wasn’t the only one feeling what you’re feeling.”

Tobio’s mouth dropped open. “You mean—”

“Yeah.” Koushi beamed. “I want a relationship too.”

The words settled between them, and Koushi heard his heart hammering in his ears. When Tobio crawled forward an inch, he felt his heart leap out of his chest.

“Are you sure?” Tobio asked. “I’m probably going to be grouchy in the mornings, and I’m not sure how I’ll be around your friends, and you’re graduating in four months. I’ll be here another three years. What’s going to happen?”

“We’ll figure it out.” Koushi’s fingers went up to brush against Tobio’s hand, and he saw Tobio melt under his touch. “We have time.”

Tobio frowned. “Like I said, four months. That’s not a lot of time.”

“And like I said, we have time,” Koushi shot back, grinning. “We’ll be okay.”

Koushi wasn’t sure who leaned in first, but suddenly he and Tobio were kissing. This wasn’t like the ones he remembered from their afternoons or nights together in his bed, but something soft and loving and exactly how Koushi imagined boyfriends kiss. When Tobio put his tongue on Koushi’s lips, Koushi let him in, and he couldn’t help but moan as Tobio wrapped his arms around him and joined him on the carpet.

They made out for a bit, and when they separated, Tobio was smiling in a way that made Koushi’s heart soar. “This feels nice.”

“Yeah,” Koushi breathed, forehead pressing against Tobio’s. “It does.”

OOOO

It was Saturday night, and Tobio was going to Koushi’s apartment for one of those beer-drinking and sports-game-watching parties as his boyfriend.

_His boyfriend._

Tobio couldn’t help but smile as that realization spun around in his head. He and Koushi were dating now. It was actually going really well. They had only been together for three weeks, but it had been excellent. They had gone out on two dates, one to the coffee shop across the street from the college for breakfast and another to the library several blocks into the city. They had talked about their favorite foods, books, movies, and music, and Tobio had learned two very important things about Koushi: he liked dumping tabasco sauce on his eggs, and he had a hidden obsession with historical romances. As he was trying to explain why some book featuring a highlander was a masterpiece, Tobio burst out laughing and received several looks from the library staff.

As punishment, Koushi had thrown the novel in question at him, and the two got into a small book fight before being asked to leave.

They had also introduced each other to their friends, although Tobio had very much been begrudging with his roommate Shoyo, who asked Koushi all kinds of questions about what he was studying and what he did in his free time and “How do you stand Tobio?” Tobio had proceeded to pinch his cheeks and pull them out, something Koushi had laughed at and said was adorable. “You’re almost like siblings,” he said, and this had made Tobio stop and think for a minute. Did he hate Shoyo sometimes? Most definitely. But there was something infectious about his energy, and the encouraging texts he sent to Tobio every morning before his first class and his cheers for Tobio to have fun when he was leaving to spend time with Koushi, whether it was for dates or an _Air Bud_ marathon Koushi had suggested once, made Tobio appreciate him more, although he would never admit it.

Koushi’s friends were starting to become Tobio’s as well. Koushi’s roommates, Asahi and Daichi, were polite and kind, treating Tobio with respect. Daichi was like the family-favorite uncle, making the mild-mannered Asahi the butt of all his jokes and saying he was proud that Koushi had settled down. When Koushi had grabbed a spatula and slapped his wrist playfully, Daichi said, “I’m just saying! You’ve been around a lot, and I’m just glad to see you’re happy with being with one guy—Ow, Koushi! I know it doesn’t look like it, but that plastic hurts!”

Then there was the sex. Koushi and Tobio had only had sex once since they’d officially gotten together, after the _Air Bud_ movies were done and the popcorn had all been eaten, and it had been gentle and passionate in a way it hadn’t been before. Koushi had laid kisses all over Tobio’s body and reassuring in both positions they had tried on the couch, and Tobio was pretty sure that time was the most he had ever came. It was that good. They weren’t trying to make intimacy a priority given their relationship had been all about that before, but whenever it did happen, Tobio knew Koushi was going to spoil him.

Now Tobio was invited to the infamous Saturday night. Koushi had texted that the basketball championships were on and all the significant others of the guys would be there. If Tobio had homework, he didn’t necessarily have to come, but Tobio wanted to because he wanted to spend time with his boyfriend and meet more people, even if he had to do all his homework on Sunday.

Koushi was opening him up to making new friends. That was something Tobio had never expected to happen, but he figured the good boyfriends were the ones who opened people up and allowed them to see all they could be.

Tobio rang the doorbell and waited. He heard giggling and shuffling from behind the door before the lock clicked open and Koushi was there, a navy blue t-shirt and matching sweatpants hugging his figure.

“Tobio, you made it!” Koushi’s grin was gigantic as he wrapped his boyfriend in an embrace. Tobio felt this warm tingly heat crash against him, maybe a result from Koushi already having enough beer to get him just a little drunk. When they pulled apart, Tobio detected a whiff of barley in Koushi’s crisp cologne, but it wasn’t unpleasant. This was the Saturday Night Koushi, the one who loved a little party every now and then.

Koushi grabbed Tobio’s hand and led him into the apartment, where he noticed four people crowded around a TV with chips and salsa and guacamole and several different kinds of pizza all laid out in front of them. Daichi had his arm thrown around a girl next to him, and he was the first to look over his shoulder, mouth curled around a bottle of beer. “Hey, Tobio!” he said, waving with his beer-full hand. “Welcome to the party.”

The girl followed Daichi’s gaze to the couple, and Tobio found her eyes wide and friendly, the kind that he wouldn’t normally gravitate toward but would now. “Aw, you guys are so cute! The game’s just started.”

Tobio sat between Asahi and Koushi. It took a second to realize someone was sitting in Asahi’s lap, fiddling with a lock of hair that had fallen out of his manbun. It was a guy, short enough to fit into the lap of Asahi, and his hair was wild, spikes in black and brown cascading over his forehead. When he turned, his piercing brown eyes lit up. “Hey, I know you! You’re Tobio, right?”

“Uh, yeah,” Tobio replied, trying to remember where he had seen this guy and why he knew him. “Where do I know you from?”

“Yu Nishinoya. I was in your Intro to Sociology class last semester.” Yu closed his eyes and beamed. “It’s nice to officially meet you!”

The fingers that were messing with Asahi’s hair reached out to clasp Tobio’s hand, and Tobio looked down as they shook. Then he noticed Yu’s other hand cupping a bottle of his own, and he remembered the poll his sociology professor had done on the first day, inquiring what year everyone was in school. “Aren’t you a sophomore?”

Yu scoffed. “Please. A legal drinking age isn’t gonna keep me from drinking.” He laughed, taking a small sip and releasing an exaggerated sigh. “This’ll be my only one for the night, but hey, I call it living a little.”

Asahi leaned down to kiss Yu’s forehead. “As long as you don’t hurt yourself.”

“Please! Like I could hurt myself from one beer.” Yu nuzzled against Asahi’s stubble-filled cheek, and that’s when Tobio realized these two must be dating.

The girl leaned over to grab Tobio’s hand. “My name is Yui Michimiya. I’m Daichi’s girlfriend and vice-president of the Women in STEM club here. It’s nice to meet you!”

“Tobio,” Tobio responded. “Sociology major and I wanna be a lawyer.”

“Ooh!” Yui’s eyes became starry. “Awesome! Well, feel free to help yourself to food if you want it. The chips and pizza are from the store, but Daichi and Koushi made the dips themselves.”

“Really?” Tobio turned toward his boyfriend, who blushed and shrugged.

“It’s the least I could do,” Koushi said.

“Hey! Don’t take all the credit!” Daichi snapped. “I was your right-hand man through all of it.”

“Daichi, let Koushi have his moment,” Yu stage-whispered, and Koushi scoffed and threw a chip at him.

“Ow!” Yu yelled, burrowing further into his boyfriend. “Help me, Asahi! The enemies have fired!”

Everyone chuckled at that, and they all settled into watching the game and eating the food. Throughout the first and second quarter, Tobio felt Koushi’s head rest on his shoulder, arms coming around to cuddle with him. Tobio relished that warm touch and let himself feel it, reaching for chips, dipping them in guacamole, and giving one to himself and the other to Koushi. Koushi smiled, taking a big bite out of it as Tobio did the same.

When he had swallowed, Tobio whispered to Koushi, “I’m happy I came.”

“And I’m glad you did too,” Koushi said back, kissing his boyfriend’s cheek.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you liked the fic, kudo, bookmark, or leave a comment. Whichever method you prefer. Stay tuned for more volleyball boy college adventures soon!


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